- Research Associate, Department of Neurology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania
Dr. Rui Li is Research Associate in the Department of Neurology at the Perelman School of Medicine, based within the Bar-Or laboratory at the Center for Neuroinflammation and Experimental Therapeutics (CNET). She trained in medicine and immunology in China and at McGill University before moving with the Bar-Or group to Penn.
Dr. Li’s research has helped redefine the role of B cells in multiple sclerosis. Her landmark work identified pro-inflammatory, GM-CSF–producing B cell subsets that contribute to MS pathogenesis and demonstrated how B cell depletion therapy works in part by normalizing the ratio of pathogenic to regulatory B cells. Her ongoing research investigates how B cells interact with myeloid cells and other CNS-resident populations to drive neuroinflammation and disease progression.
Dr. Li is a key contributor to CNET and to Penn’s leadership in MS and neuroimmunology, collaborating across the Penn Colton Center for Autoimmunity, the Institute for Immunology and Immune Health, and the CHOP-Penn Age-Span NeuroImmune Program. Her work bridges mechanistic B cell biology with the clinical reality of MS therapeutics.
